Compliant relief wafer level packaging
A semiconductor structure includes a semiconductor substrate and a compliant interconnect element disposed on a first surface of the substrate. The compliant interconnect element defines a chamber between the first surface of the substrate and a surface of the compliant interconnect element. The compliant interconnect element can be a compliant layer. The compliant layer can be formed of a polymer, such as silicone. A conductive layer can be disposed on the compliant layer, in contact with a contact pad on the semiconductor substrate. A method for forming a semiconductor structure includes providing a semiconductor substrate and providing a compliant interconnect element on a first surface of the substrate, so that the compliant interconnect element defines a chamber between the compliant interconnect element and the first surface of the substrate.
Latest Infineon Technologies AG Patents:
This invention relates to semiconductor wafer processing, and more particularly to wafer level packaging.
BACKGROUNDTraditionally, integrated circuit (IC) chips are packaged individually as single dies. Chip are packaged one at a time after the front-end processing of a semiconductor substrate is complete and the substrate is singulated into individual dies. In contrast, front-end processing steps for IC fabrication allow one to fabricate a number of chips simultaneously on a single wafer, thereby increasing throughput and cost-effectiveness. Moreover, the shrinking geometries of integrated circuits present a further limitation to traditional packaging techniques. The need for an increased density of conductive leads requires a reduction in connector pitch, both in packages and in printed circuit boards (PCB). This scaling down of geometry approaches the limits of existing packaging technology and increases packaging costs.
The challenges of shrinking geometries have been addressed by the development of ball grid arrays (BGA). BGA is an alternative packaging method that allows one to contact IC chip pads with solder balls that are later attached to printed circuit boards. The use of solder balls reduces the length of the conductive legs contacting the die, thereby lowering the parasitics of the legs at higher operating frequencies and lowering energy consumption.
Wafer level packaging (WLP) methods also address the limitations of traditional packaging techniques. WLP employs some of the processing steps used in front-end processing, such as fabrication of contacts to IC chip pads and to package many dies simultaneously. WLP can include making legs on the upper surfaces of a chip, using front-end technology. One can, therefore, simultaneously package all the chips on a single substrate cost-effectively. However, certain WLP processes have the disadvantage of packaging bad dies as well as good dies.
Three fabrication elements are needed for packaging an integrated circuit: an interconnect element between chip and package; a protective layer on the active side of the chip, such as a polyimide layer; and, in the case in which chips have pads with a low pitch, e.g. 150 μm, a redistribution of chip pads in an area array having a larger pitch, e.g. 800 μm, to allow the use of inexpensive circuit boards having larger pitches. Small footprints are achieved when the package is the same size as the chip.
A difficulty in wafer level processing results from the integration of materials having different thermal expansion coefficients. For example, a semiconductor chip is usually fabricated from silicon, which has a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of approximately 3×10−6/K. A circuit board, on the other hand, has a much higher CTE of approximately 15-18×10−6/K. Chips and boards undergo thermal cycling during reliability testing. For example, a standardized reliability test requires cycling two times an hour between −40° C. and 125° C. During such cycling, stress is induced, especially in the case of large chips. The board, with its higher CTE, expands more than the chip during heating. Thermal cycling can, therefore, lead to bowing of the board, excessive stresses on the chip, and, possibly, destruction of the chip and/or board.
Historically, large chips are packaged with long legs or leads (leadframe packages). These long legs can absorb stress resulting from CTE mismatch. However, this approach becomes problematic as pad pitches decrease, thereby also decreasing the leg pitch requirements to dimensions that are difficult to achieve.
An alternative approach, in which chips are soldered directly to the circuit board, fails to provide the necessary elasticity. A solder bump for connecting a chip to a PCB can be destroyed during soldering, thermal cycling, or burn-in because of CTE mismatch and the non-compliance of the solder bump. This presents a reliability risk, especially for large chips, i.e. chips having solder balls at a distance greater than 5 mm from a neutral point. One solution is to provide a polymeric underfill, thereby enabling the chip to adhere to the PCB. The underfill serves as a stress absorber. A packaged die is soldered to the board, after which underfill is applied to the package and hardened. This resulting structure reduces the stress on the legs or solder balls. The underfill, however is hard and will tend to absorb stress, thereby causing the board to bend. Commonly used underfill processes do not fulfill the need for short process time as well as low process cost.
SUMMARYIn an aspect of the invention, a semiconductor structure includes a semiconductor substrate and a compliant interconnect element disposed on a first surface of the substrate. The compliant interconnect element defines a chamber between the first surface of the substrate and a surface of the compliant layer.
Embodiments of this aspect of the invention can include the following features. The compliant interconnect element is a compliant layer. The compliant layer includes a polymer. The polymer includes silicone. The chamber is surrounded on all of its sides by the compliant layer and the first surface of the chip. The chamber has a height within the range of 50 μm to 200 μm. The compliant layer has a thickness within the range of about 5 μm to about 500 μm. The substrate includes a device. The device includes an integrated circuit. The device includes a micro-electro mechanical system. An encapsulation layer is disposed on a second surface of the semiconductor substrate.
The structure includes a first conducting pad on the substrate and a conducting layer, disposed on the compliant interconnect element in contact with the first conducting pad. The conducting layer includes metal. The metal is selected from the group of titanium, copper, nickel, and gold. The conducting layer has a thickness within the range of about 2 μm to about 5 μm.
The structure has a plurality of conducting pads on the substrate, with the conductive layer including a plurality of lines. Each of the lines contacts one of the plurality of conducting pads, and the lines defining a pad redistribution pattern.
The structure includes a printed circuit board having a second conducting pad, with the second conducting pad being in electrical communication with the first conducting pad on the substrate via the conducting layer.
In another aspect of the invention, a method for forming a semiconductor structure is provided. The method includes providing a semiconductor substrate and providing a compliant interconnect element on a first surface of the substrate, such that the compliant interconnect element defines a chamber between the compliant layer and the first surface of the substrate.
Embodiments of this aspect of the invention can include the following. Providing the compliant interconnect element includes providing a compliant layer. The compliant layer is provided by comprises providing a transfer substrate having a compliant layer disposed thereon. Providing a transfer substrate includes providing a glass substrate. Providing a semiconductor substrate includes providing a plurality of singulated die, each of the die including a semiconductor device. Each one of the plurality of singulated die is encapsulated in a protective material to form a reconstituted wafer.
An advantage of an embodiment of the invention is that a semiconductor structure compliant layer defining a chamber allows for more elastic in-plane behavior in the x-y plane during temperature changes. The stress generated by the different coefficients of thermal expansion of a chip and a board can be relaxed by the compliant air gaps.
The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.
Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTIONA method is described for forming an interconnect element as part of the structure of a semiconductor device package, with a compliant layer defining a chamber between the semiconductor substrate surface and a surface of the compliant layer. The chamber, an air gap surrounded by compliant material, increases the compliance available in a chip package. This compliancy reduces the chances of breakage of chip to board interconnect during thermal cycling. The package structure is formed by primarily using techniques similar to those used for front-end processing.
Referring to
Referring to
Referring also to
Referring to
Referring also to
Referring also to
Referring to
Referring also to
Referring also to
Referring also to
Referring also to
After integrated circuit 52 is tested, the reconstituted wafer is singulated into individual dies 50, 50′. Because dies 50, 50′ are already encapsulated by encapsulating material 66, they do not require further encapsulation after singulation. If, however, dies 50, 50′ were to be soldered to a board, the formation of a solder stop layer 39 would be advantageous, as discussed above with reference to FIG. 5B.
Referring to
Referring to
A number of embodiments of the invention have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the transfer substrate can be made of metal or polymer. The monoatomic layer deposited on the transfer substrate can be polyethylene or Teflon®. The monoatomic layer can be deposited on only a portion of the transfer substrate. The compliant dielectric layer can be deposited by spraying or electro-deposition. The compliant dielectric layer can be sprayed by a spin coater or a spray coater, manufactured by, e.g., Süss MicroTech AG. The dielectric layer can also be deposited on a glass substrate by printing. The dielectric layer can have a thickness within the range of 5 μm to 500 μm, preferably 50 μm to 200 μm. The bonding pad on the integrated circuit can be made of metals other than aluminum, such as gold or copper. The dielectric layer can be cured in an oven instead of a bonding machine. If an integrated circuit comprises a memory chip, the semiconductor substrate can undergo burn-in with a test board having the same dimensions as the substrate. The semiconductor substrate can be singulated into dies immediately after testing, or it can undergo further processing before it is singulated. Instead of soldering a singulated die to a printed circuit board, the die can be glued to the board by a conductive adhesive, e.g., conductive silicone. The distance between good dies on a transfer substrate can be between 50 μm and 500 μm. A die can be encapsulated on its sides by one type of encapsulating material and on its backside by a second type of encapsulating material. The encapsulating material can be dispensed using a fluid dispensing system such as the C-718 SMT, manufactured by Asymtek, Inc., based in Carlsbad, Calif. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.
Claims
1. A semiconductor structure, comprising:
- a semiconductor substrate;
- a compliant interconnect element disposed on a first surface of the substrate, said compliant interconnect element comprising a portion extending across and away from the first surface of the substrate to define a chamber between the first surface of the substrate and the portion of the compliant interconnect element;
- a first conducting pad on the substrate;
- a conducting layer, disposed on the compliant interconnect element in contact with the first conducting pad; and
- a plurality of conducting pads on the substrate,
- wherein the conductive layer comprises a plurality of lines, each of the lines contacting one of the plurality of conducting pads, the lines defining a pad redistribution pattern, the plurality of conducting pads have a first pitch and the lines define a pad distribution pattern have a second pitch.
2. The structure of claim 1, wherein the interconnect element comprises a compliant layer.
3. The structure of claim 2, wherein the compliant layer comprises a polymer.
4. The structure of claim 3, wherein the polymer comprises silicone.
5. The structure of claim 1, wherein the chamber is surrounded on all of its sides by the portion of the compliant interconnect element and the first surface of the substrate.
6. The structure of claim 1, wherein the chamber has a height within the range of about 50 μm to about 200 μm.
7. The structure of claim 2, wherein the compliant layer has a thickness within the range of about 5 μm to about 500 μm.
8. The structure of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a device.
9. The structure of claim 8, wherein the device comprises an integrated circuit.
10. The structure of claim 9, wherein the device comprises a micro-electro mechanical system.
11. The structure of claim 1, further comprising:
- an encapsulation layer disposed on a second surface of the semiconductor substrate.
12. The structure of claim 1, wherein the conducting layer comprises metal.
13. The structure of claim 12, wherein the metal is selected from the group consisting of titanium, copper, nickel, and gold.
14. The structure of claim 12, wherein the conducting layer has a thickness within the range of about 2 μm to about 5 μm.
15. The structure of claim 1, further comprising:
- a printed circuit board having a second conducting pad disposed thereon,
- wherein the second conducting pad is in electrical communication with the first conducting pad on the substrate via the conducting layer.
16. A method for forming a semiconductor structure, said method comprising:
- providing a semiconductor substrate;
- providing a compliant interconnect element on a first surface of the substrate, said compliant interconnect element comprising a portion extending across and away from the first surface of the substrate to define a chamber between the portion of the compliant interconnect element and the first surface of the substrate;
- disposing a first conducting pad on the substrate;
- disposing a conducting layer on the compliant interconnect element in contact with the first conducting pad; and
- disposing a plurality of conducting pads on the substrate,
- wherein the conductive layer comprises a plurality of lines, each of the lines contacting one of the plurality of conducting pads, the lines defining a pad redistribution pattern, the plurality of conducting pads have a first pitch and the lines define a pad distribution pattern have a second pitch.
17. The method of claim 16, providing the compliant interconnect element comprises providing a compliant layer.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein providing the compliant layer comprises providing a transfer substrate having a compliant layer disposed thereon.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein providing a transfer substrate comprises providing a glass substrate.
20. The method of claim 16, wherein providing a semiconductor substrate comprises a providing a plurality of singulated dies, each of said dies the including a semiconductor device.
21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:
- encapsulating each one of the plurality of singulated dies in a protective material to form a reconstituted wafer.
22. The structure of claim 1, wherein the first pitch is smaller in size than the second pitch.
23. The structure of claim 22, wherein the first pitch is about 150 μm and the second pitch is about 800 μm.
Type: Grant
Filed: Oct 31, 2001
Date of Patent: May 3, 2005
Patent Publication Number: 20030080425
Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
Inventors: Harry Hedler (Germering), Thorsten Meyer (Erlangen), Barbara Vasquez (Munich)
Primary Examiner: S. V. Clark
Attorney: Fish & Richardson P.C.
Application Number: 10/032,941